Massage device having variable stroke length

ABSTRACT

Exemplary embodiments of massaging devices are disclosed herein. One exemplary embodiment includes a piston having a longitudinal axis, a massaging head connected to the piston, a motor located on a first side of the longitudinal axis and a handle located on a second side of the longitudinal axis. A drive mechanism for moving the piston and massage head is also included.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No.17/681,367 filed on Feb. 25, 2022, which is a continuation of U.S.patent application Ser. No. 15/892,665 filed on Feb. 9, 2018, andentitled “MASSAGE DEVICE HAVING VARIABLE STROKE LENGTH”, (now U.S. Pat.No. 11,285,075 issued on Mar. 29, 2022), which is a continuation of U.S.patent application Ser. No. 14/317,573 filed on Jun. 27, 2014, andentitled “MASSAGING DEVICE HAVING A HEAT SINK” (now U.S. Pat. No.9,889,066 issued on Feb. 13, 2018), which claims priority to and thebenefits of U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 61/841,693 filed onJul. 1, 2013, and entitled “MASSAGING DEVICE”, the entireties of whichare incorporated herein by reference.

BACKGROUND

This invention relates generally to medical devices, and moreparticularly, to a deep muscle-stimulating device used to increasemuscle metabolism, increase the lactic acid cycle and relieve pain.

Vibrating massaging devices are available on the market today; however,those devices suffer from many deficiencies. Many of the prior artmassaging devices are bulky, get very hot, are noisy and/or aredifficult to use for extended periods of time.

SUMMARY

Exemplary embodiments of massaging devices are disclosed herein. Oneexemplary embodiment includes a piston having a longitudinal axis and amassaging head connected to the piston. A motor is located on a firstside of the longitudinal axis and a handle is located on a second sideof the longitudinal axis. A drive mechanism for moving the piston andmassage head is also included.

Another exemplary embodiment of a massaging device includes a handle, apiston, a massaging head attached to the piston, a motor, a drivemechanism for converting rotary motion of the motor to linear motion todrive the piston back and forth in a reciprocating motion, a processor,memory, a data connection in circuit communication with the processorand logic for transmitting data between the massaging device and aremote device.

Still another exemplary embodiment includes a massaging device that hasa handle, a motor, a drive mechanism for converting rotary motion of themotor to reciprocating motion, a piston movable in a linearreciprocating motion connected to the drive mechanism and a massage headattached to the piston. The exemplary embodiment also includes a heatsink in thermal communication with the motor and drive mechanism, and ahousing having two cavities. The first cavity at least partiallysurrounds the motor and the second cavity at least partially surroundsthe heat sink. The cavities are separated from one another and thesecond cavity includes one or more openings for allowing air to flowover the heat sink to dissipate heat from the massager.

Another exemplary massaging device includes a housing, a handleextending outward from the housing and a piston having a longitudinalaxis extending substantially perpendicular to the handle. A massaginghead is connected to the piston. In addition, the massaging deviceincludes a motor, a drive mechanism for moving the piston and a controlpanel. The control panel is located on the housing above the handle.

In yet another exemplary embodiment, a massaging device includes ahandle, a piston, a quick-connection mechanism and one or more massagingheads releasably connectable to the piston by the quick-connectionmechanism. The massaging device further includes a motor and a drivemechanism for moving the piston.

Another exemplary massaging device includes a handle, a piston, amassaging head connected to the piston, a motor and a drive mechanismfor moving the piston. The drive mechanism includes a crank bearing thathas one or more spring bars.

Still yet, another exemplary massaging device includes a handle, apiston a massaging head connected to the piston, a drive mechanism formoving the piston in a back and forth motion and a lost motion mechanismlocated between the massaging head and the drive mechanism.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

These and other features and advantages of the present invention willbecome better understood with regard to the following description andaccompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 illustrates a perspective view of an exemplary embodiment of amassaging device;

FIG. 2 illustrates a first cross-section of the exemplary massagingdevice of FIG. 1 ;

FIG. 3 illustrates a second cross-section of the exemplary massagingdevice of FIG. 1 ;

FIG. 4 illustrates an exploded perspective view of an exemplary drivemechanism of the massaging device;

FIGS. 5A and 5B show enlarged side views of a crank bearing havingspring bars for use in the exemplary drive mechanism of FIG. 4 ;

FIGS. 6, 6A and 6B illustrate an exemplary quick-disconnect mechanismfor connecting one or more massaging heads to a massaging device;

FIG. 7 illustrates a schematic view of an exemplary lost motion controlmechanism for varying the stroke of the piston driving a massaging head;and

FIG. 8 illustrates an exemplary embodiment of a simplified block circuitdiagram for a massaging device.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The Detailed Description merely describes exemplary embodiments of theinvention and is not intended to limit the scope of the claims in anyway. Indeed, the invention is broader than and unlimited by theexemplary embodiments, and unless specifically indicated otherwise, theterms used in the claims have their full ordinary meaning.

“Circuit communication” as used herein indicates a communicativerelationship between devices. Direct electrical, electromagnetic andoptical connections and indirect electrical, electromagnetic and opticalconnections are examples of circuit communication. Two devices are incircuit communication if a signal from one is received by the other,regardless of whether the signal is modified by some other device. Forexample, two devices separated by one or more of thefollowing—amplifiers, filters, transformers, optoisolators, digital oranalog buffers, analog integrators, other electronic circuitry, fiberoptic transceivers or satellites—are in circuit communication if asignal from one is communicated to the other, even though the signal ismodified by the intermediate device(s). As another example, anelectromagnetic sensor is in circuit communication with a signal if itreceives electromagnetic radiation from the signal. As a final example,two devices not directly connected to each other, but both capable ofinterfacing with a third device, such as, for example, a processor, arein circuit communication.

Also, as used herein, voltages and values representing digitizedvoltages are considered to be equivalent for the purposes of thisapplication, and thus the term “voltage” as used herein refers to eithera signal, or a value in a processor representing a signal, or a value ina processor determined from a value representing a signal.

“Signal,” as used herein includes, but is not limited to one or moreelectrical signals, analog or digital signals, one or more computerinstructions, a bit or bit stream, or the like.

“Logic,” synonymous with “circuit” as used herein includes, but is notlimited to hardware, firmware, software and/or combinations of each toperform a function(s) or an action(s). For example, based on a desiredapplication or needs, logic may include a software-controlled processor,microprocessor or microcontroller, discrete logic, such as anapplication specific integrated circuit (ASIC) or other programmed logicdevice. Logic may also be fully embodied as software. The circuitsidentified and described herein may have many different configurationsto perform the desired functions.

Any values identified in the detailed description are exemplary, andthey are determined as needed for a particular massaging device.Accordingly, the inventive concepts disclosed and claimed herein are notlimited to particular values or ranges of values used to describe theembodiments disclosed herein.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an exemplary embodiment of a hand-heldmassaging device 100. The exemplary massaging device 100 includes a mainhousing 102 that houses a motor and a drive unit and an upper housing104 that includes a heat sink and a fan. In addition, massaging device100 includes a first handle 106, and a second optional handle 108.Handle 106 has a longitudinal axis that extends away from the housing102. The massaging device 100 also includes a massaging head 130. Asdiscussed in more detail below, in some embodiments massaging head 130includes a quick-release connection.

Massaging device 100 includes a control panel 124. In one embodiment,control panel 124 comprises a first momentary pushbutton 126 and asecond momentary pushbutton 128. First and second pushbuttons 126, 128may serve multiple purposes. In one embodiment, pushing the firstpushbutton 126 once moves the massaging device 100 to a first presetspeed. Pushing the first pushbutton 126 a second time moves themassaging device 100 to a second preset speed. Accordingly, multiplepreset speeds may be selected by pushing a single pushbutton. Inaddition, pushing pushbutton 126 and holding it down may increase thespeed of the massaging head until the user releases the pushbutton 126.

In addition, if the massaging device 100 is turned off, pushing secondpushbutton 128 once and holding it in for a period of time turns on themassaging device 100. Pushing the second pushbutton 128 in and holdingit in for a period of time, such as, for example one second, causesmassaging device 100 to turn off. While massaging device 100 is turnedon, pushing and releasing second pushbutton 128 decreases the speed ofthe massaging device 100 to the next lowest preset speed. Pushing andreleasing pushbutton 128 again further reduces the speed of themassaging device 100. In some embodiments, the operating speed of themassaging device is generally between about 600 and 3600 strokes perminute.

The control panel 124 is located above handle 106 on upper housing 104.Control panel 124 is located off of the handle 106, which preventsaccidental contact between a user's hand and the control panel 124 andallows a user to move her hand to any position on the handle 106 duringoperation. Preferably, control panel 124 is located so that it isreachable by a user's thumb without the user having to remove her handfrom the handle 106. In addition, massaging device 100 includes a powercord 132 for providing power to the massaging device 100.

Although the exemplary control panel 124 illustrates two pushbuttons126, 128, other controls may be used, such as dials and switches. Inaddition, visual or audible signals may be generated and displayed oncontrol panel 124. To that extent, control panel 124 may include avisual display (not shown), an audible device (not shown) or the like,such as, for example a speaker, or the like. If a visual or audibledevice is used, the visual or audible device may be located proximatethe pushbuttons or other controls, or may be located apart from suchcontrols.

Upper housing 104 includes an air intake aperture covered by intakegrate 120 and one or more air outlet apertures covered by outtakegrate(s) 122. As described in more detail below, the heat-generatinginternal components of massaging device 100 are cooled by air passingthrough upper housing portion 104.

FIGS. 2 and 3 are cross-sections of massaging device 100. Located withinhandle 106 is control circuitry 260. Control circuitry 260 is in circuitcommunication with power cord 132, control panel 124, fan 222 and motor210.

Motor 210 is located in housing 102 opposite handle 106. Motor 210 is avariable speed DC motor; however, motor 210 may be a constant speedmotor, an AC motor or the like. In one embodiment, motor 210 has anoperating speed of between about 600 and 3600 revolutions per minute(RPMs).

Motor 210 includes a shaft 211 that extends into a flywheel 212.Flywheel 212 includes a cylindrical projecting member or crank pin 213positioned offset from the centerline 400 (FIG. 4 ) of the flywheel 212.Crank pin 213 is inserted in an aperture 410 (FIG. 4 ) of a crankbearing 214. Crank bearing 214 is inserted into a pocket 232 of a piston230. The piston also has an elongated cutout 402 to receive part of theflywheel 212 for compactness while permitting piston reciprocation.Crank bearing 214 is cuboid in the exemplary embodiment, however, insome exemplary embodiments, crank bearing 214 may cylindrical.

FIG. 4 is an exploded perspective view of piston 230, flywheel 212 andcrank bearing 214. Piston 230 may be made of any suitable material, andin some embodiments, piston 230 is made of aluminum. As illustrated inthe drawings, in some embodiments, motor 210 is located on one side ofthe longitudinal axis of piston 230 and handle 106 is located on asecond side of the longitudinal axis. Piston 230 includes a pocket 232(or transverse slot) having a first wall 232A and a second wall 232B. Insome embodiments, piston 230 is hollow on either side of pocket 232 toreduce weight.

Flywheel 212 includes a cylindrical projecting member 213. Crank pin 213is off set from the centerline 400 of flywheel 212. Accordingly, asflywheel 212 rotates, crank pin 213 rotates in a circular path aroundthe centerline 400 of the flywheel 212. Rotation of crank pin 213 causescrank bearing 214 to travel in a circular motion within piston pocket232 causing reciprocal motion of piston 230.

Piston 230 is restrained by two spaced apart bearings 310, 311 (FIG. 3). Bearing 310 is located on a first side of flywheel 212 and bearing311 is located on a second side of flywheel 212. Accordingly, piston 230may only move in a back-and-forth motion along its longitudinal axis.The arrangement of the bearings 310, 311 on both ends of the piston 230provides for a very sturdy and robust drive mechanism. Because piston230 is constrained to a linear back-and-forth motion, as crank bearing214 rotates in a circular motion, it acts against side walls 232A and232B of pocket 232. This mechanism for converting rotary to linearmotion is known as a “Scotch yoke.”

In order to correctly assemble the components of a Scotch yoke drive,the pocket 232 (or walls of transverse slot) must be milled larger thanthe outside dimensions of the crank bearing 214. The gap between theinside of pocket 232 and the outside of crank bearing 214 is typically0.1 mm inches. Motor 210 rotates at between about 600 and 3600 RPMs andeach time the crank bearing 214 switches from moving, for example,toward side wall 232A of pocket 232 to moving toward the other side wall232B, the bearing block 214 travels the small gap and smacks or strikesthe side wall, e.g., side 232B, which causes a significant amount ofnoise and wear.

In one exemplary embodiment, crank bearing 214 is made with one springbar 412. FIG. 5A is an enlarged elevation view of side 420 of crankbearing 214 and FIG. 5B is an enlarged plan view showing top 422 ofcrank bearing 214. The spring bars 412 are created by milling theoutside of the spring block 214 proud by 0.4 mm in the area of thedesired spring bar.

As illustrated in FIG. 5A, the surface of spring bar 412 bows outward.The size of the bow is set to increase the width of the crank bearing214 to be slightly larger (0.4 mm) than the width of the pocket 232. Insome embodiments, slots 502 and 504 are milled into the surfaces of side420 and top 422 below the spring bar 412 to allow spring bar 412 todeflect inwards. In some embodiments, slots 502 and 504 intersectthereby leaving spring bar 412 supported only on each end.

Thus, when crank bearing 214 is inserted into pocket 232, the spring bar412 contacts the corresponding surface of the pocket 232 and deflectsinward which causes crank bearing 214 to fit snuggly in pocket 232.Accordingly, as crank bearing 214 changes directions from, for example,moving toward side wall 232A to moving toward side wall 232B, the springbar 412 takes up the slack in the gap and prevent noise and wear thatwould otherwise be generated by the crank bearing 214 striking the sidewalls 232A, 232B of the pocket 232.

Crank bearing 214 may be made of any suitable material; in someembodiments, crank bearing 214 is made of plastic. Although theexemplary embodiment is shown and described as having one spring bar,exemplary embodiments may have any number of spring bars.

Massaging device 100 includes a drive housing 218. Drive housing 218 ismade of a heat conducting material, such as, for example, aluminum andhas a longitudinal bore 327 passing therethrough to receive piston 230.As shown in FIG. 3 , drive housing 218 includes a first internalcylindrical groove 308 for holding bearing 310 and a second internalcylindrical groove 309 for holding bearing 311. Spaced bearings 310 and311 mount and guide the piston 230 relative to the drive housing 218.Drive housing 318 surrounds piston 230 and flywheel 212. In someembodiments, drive housing 318 is made up of multiple components, suchas an upper drive housing and a lower drive housing.

In addition, motor 210 includes a motor housing 209 that bolts ontodrive housing 218. Motor housing 209 is also made of a heat-conductingmaterial, such as, for example, aluminum. Secured to drive housing 218is heat sink 220. Heat sink 220 includes a plurality of fins 221. Heatsink 220 is made of a heat conducting-material, such as, for example,aluminum.

Main housing 102 contains a first cavity 281. Upper housing 104 containsa second cavity 282. First cavity 281 and second cavity 282 areseparated by a barrier 280. Motor housing 209 and drive housing 218 arelocated in the first cavity 281. Heat sink 220 is located in secondcavity 282. The exemplary embodiment describes a main housing 102 andupper housing 104. These may be portions made up of a single structureor multiple structures secured to each other.

Second cavity 282 includes an air inlet aperture 340 which is covered bygrate 120 and one or more air outlet apertures 342 covered by one ormore grates 122. A fan 222 is located in second cavity 282. When the fan222 is activated, air enters second cavity 282 through air inletaperture 340 and passes over cooling fins 221 of heat sink 220, and theair then passes out of second cavity 282 through the one or more airoutlets 342. The fan may be activated by a switch (not shown) on controlpanel 124, activated automatically when the massaging device 100 isturned on, or may be activated by a thermostat (not shown). Thus, thecooling system for massaging device 100 is located in second cavity 282and is isolated from the other components in the massaging device 100.

In typical massaging devices, cooling air is blown over the motor.Because the massaging devices operate for long periods of time in anatmosphere that is subject to a significant amount of dust and lintbecause the massaging device is often used on a person wearing clothes,a towel or a robe. Over time, the dust and lint may build up on themotor and cause the prior art massaging devices to overheat. Locatingthe cooling system in a cavity 282 that is isolated from the rest of theinternal components minimizes this type of failure. The air outletgrates 122 may be sized larger to allow any lint and dust to freely passout of the cavity 282. In addition, the surface of the heat sink 220 issmooth and thus, there will be few pockets for dust and lint to gettrapped.

FIGS. 6 and 6A illustrate an exemplary embodiment of a quick-connectsystem 600 for connecting a massaging head 620 to a piston 602. Whenproviding a deep tissue massage using a massaging device, such as, forexample, massaging device 100, it may be desirable to switch massagingheads to work on different muscles or different portions of musclesduring the massage. The exemplary quick-connect system 600 allows a userto quickly switch massaging heads 620. Moreover, the exemplaryquick-connect system 600 may be used without turning off the massagingdevice 100.

Quick-connect system 600 includes a piston 602 that has a hollow-endbore 608 for receiving the shaft 621 of a massaging head 620. Locatedwithin the bore 608 of piston 602 is a cylindrical seat 604. Cylindricalseat 604 retains a magnet 606. Magnet 606 is illustrated with its northpole located flush with the seat and facing toward the opening in bore608. Massaging head 620 includes a shaft 621 having a cylindrical pocket622 at the distal end. Located within the cylindrical pocket 622 is amagnet 624. Magnet 624 is positioned so that its south pole is locatedat the distal end of shaft 621. Accordingly, when the shaft 621 ofmassaging head 620 is slid into opening in bore 608, the magnets 606 and624 are attracted to one another and magnetically hold massaging head620 firmly in place.

To remove massaging head 620, a user need only apply a sufficient amountof force to separate the two magnets 606, 624. The strength of themagnets 606, 624 are sized to prevent the massaging head 620 fromseparating from the piston 602 during normal use, and yet allow a userto quickly remove and replace the massaging head 620. In someembodiments the end 626 of the massaging head 620 is rounded, pointed ortapered (not shown) to allow it to easily slip into the opening 608 evenwhile the piston 608 is moving.

FIG. 6B illustrates another quick-connect massaging head 630.Quick-connect massaging head 630 is substantially the same as massaginghead 620 except that the head portion 639 has a different shape thanhead portion 629 of massaging head 620.

In some instances, it may be desirable to adjust the throw or the strokelength of the massaging head to work on larger or smaller muscle groups,or deeper or shallower points of stress or soreness in the muscles. FIG.7 illustrates an exemplary embodiment of a lost motion system 700.Although lost motion system 700 is a hydraulic lost motion system, othermechanical lost motion devices may be used in accordance withembodiments of the present invention.

Lost motion system 700 is contained in housing 702. Housing 702 may besimilar to drive housing 218 described above except it may need to belarger to accommodate lost motion system 700. Housing 702 includes afloating piston 720 located in first cylindrical bore 708. Floatingpiston 720 includes a sealing member 722 for forming a seal betweenfloating piston 720 and first cylindrical bore 708. A cam 706 secured tohousing 702 may be rotated to adjust the amount of travel that floatingpiston 720 may move. A passage 710 fluidically connects firstcylindrical bore 708 to second cylindrical bore 704.

A drive piston 730 is located in second cylindrical bore 704. Drivepiston 730 includes a sealing member 732 to seal between the drivepiston 730 and second cylindrical bore 704. Drive piston 730 may bedriven in substantially the same way as described above with respect topiston 230. A passage 705 fluidically connects second cylindrical bore704 and passage 710 to third cylindrical bore 706. Located within thirdcylindrical bore 706 is an output piston 740.

Output piston 740 includes a sealing member 742, such as, for example,an o-ring to form a seal between drive piston 730 and third cylindricalbore 706. Hydraulic fluid 712 is located in passages 705, 710 andportions of the first, second, and third cylindrical cavities 708, 704and 706 as illustrated. A massaging head (not shown) is connected tooutput piston 740.

During operation, if cam 706 is set so that floating piston 720 isretained at the proximate end of first cylindrical bore 708 (asillustrated), movement of the drive piston 730 moves output piston 740its maximum stroke length. If cam 706 is set so that floating piston 720moves to adjacent the distal end of first cylindrical bore 708, movementof the drive piston 730 moves output piston 740 its minimum strokelength. The cam may also be selectively rotated to intermediatepositions to choose different magnitudes of floating piston movementresulting in different selected magnitudes of output piston movement.

In some embodiments, floating piston 720 is physically connected to thecam or other adjustment mechanism so that it is positioned in apredetermined position and remains stationary during operation of thedrive piston 730. Thus, floating piston 720 does not float duringoperation of the massaging device.

In some embodiments, the lost motion system may be contained in themassaging head itself, or in an adaptor that connects between the pistonand the massaging head. Thus, rather than having a cam in the housing ofthe massaging device, different applicator heads or adaptors having aset lost motion, or variable lost motion systems integral therein may beused. In some embodiments, such adaptors and massaging heads may beadapted with a quick-connect system similar to the ones described withrespect to FIGS. 6 and 6A.

FIG. 8 illustrates a simplified exemplary electrical schematic diagram800 of an embodiment of a massaging device. The components disclosed asbeing on a particular circuit board may be on multiple circuit boards orindividually mounted and hardwired to one another. Circuit board 801includes memory 804, motor control circuitry 810 and fan controlcircuitry 816, which are in circuit communication with processor 802.Fan control circuitry 816 is in circuit communication with fan 817.

Power circuitry 812 may be included on circuit board 801 or may belocated on its own external to the massager. Power circuitry 812includes the necessary power conditioning circuitry to provide power toboth the electronics and the motors. In circuit communication with powercircuitry 812 is plug 814. Optionally two or more power circuits may beutilized. All of the connections between power circuitry 812 and theother components may not be shown in FIG. 8 ; however, those skilled inthe art have the required knowledge to provide power to the devices thatrequire power. Motor control circuitry 810 is in circuit communicationwith drive motor 811. Drive motor 811 is used to drive the piston andmassaging head as described above.

Memory 804 is a processor readable media and includes the necessarylogic to operate the massaging device. Examples of different processorreadable media include Flash Memory, Read-Only Memory (ROM),Random-Access Memory (RAM), programmable read-only memory (PROM),electrically programmable read-only memory (EPROM), electricallyerasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), magnetic disk, andoptically readable mediums, and others. Still further, the processes andlogic described herein can be merged into one large process flow ordivided into many sub-process flows. The order in which the processflows herein have been described is not critical and can be rearrangedwhile still accomplishing the same results. Indeed, the process flowsdescribed herein may be rearranged, consolidated and/or reorganized intheir implementation as warranted or desired.

In addition, processor 802 is in circuit communication with controlpanel 806. Control panel 806 includes any desired pushbuttons, dials,displays or the like. Control panel 806 provides the operator interfaceto operate and control the massaging device.

Processor 802 is also in circuit communication with data connection 820.Representative data connections 820 include an Ethernet wire, Bluetooth,WiFi, optical transmitter/reader, an IR reader and the like.Combinations of two or more different data connections 820 may be used.Data connection 820 may be used to transmit data to an outside device,such as, for example, a computer or hand-held portable device. Varioususes for transmitting such data are described below.

In some embodiments, processor 802 includes logic to collect and storedata related to use of the massaging device. Exemplary types of data mayinclude usage rates, operating times or the like. In some embodiments,different massaging heads include an RFID chip and when inserted intothe massaging device, an RFID reader (not shown) identifies and storesthe type of massaging head utilized. In some embodiments, a customernumber may be associated with the data. This data may be used todetermine lease rates of the massaging device, for calculatingcost/benefit analysis, or for setting up customized massages.

In some embodiments, data may be uploaded from a computer or hand-heldportable device to the massaging device. Such data may includecustomized massaging programs tailored for individual needs. In someembodiments, the customized massaging program may be reflective of priormassages given to a customer that were particularly well-received by thecustomer.

In some embodiments, the customized massaging program may indicate tothe user on a display on the control panel 806 massage times, locations,type of massage head to use or the like to ensure covering the desiredlocations with the customized massage.

While various inventive aspects, concepts and features of the inventionsmay be described and illustrated herein as embodied in combination inthe exemplary embodiments, these various aspects, concepts and featuresmay be used in many alternative embodiments, either individually or invarious combinations and sub-combinations thereof. Unless expresslyexcluded herein all such combinations and sub-combinations are intendedto be within the scope of the present inventions. Still further, whilevarious alternative embodiments as to the various aspects, concepts andfeatures of the inventions—such as alternative materials, structures,configurations, methods, circuits, devices and components, software,hardware, control logic, alternatives as to form, fit and function, andso on—may be described herein, such descriptions are not intended to bea complete or exhaustive list of available alternative embodiments,whether presently known or later developed. Those skilled in the art mayreadily adopt one or more of the inventive aspects, concepts or featuresinto additional embodiments and uses within the scope of the presentinventions even if such embodiments are not expressly disclosed herein.Additionally, even though some features, concepts or aspects of theinventions may be described herein as being a preferred arrangement ormethod, such description is not intended to suggest that such feature isrequired or necessary unless expressly so stated. Still further,exemplary or representative values and ranges may be included to assistin understanding the present disclosure; however, such values and rangesare not to be construed in a limiting sense and are intended to becritical values or ranges only if so expressly stated. Moreover, whilevarious aspects, features and concepts may be expressly identifiedherein as being inventive or forming part of an invention, suchidentification is not intended to be exclusive, but rather there may beinventive aspects, concepts and features that are fully described hereinwithout being expressly identified as such or as part of a specificinvention. Descriptions of exemplary methods or processes are notlimited to inclusion of all steps as being required in all cases, nor isthe order that the steps are presented to be construed as required ornecessary unless expressly so stated.

What is claimed is:
 1. An apparatus comprising: a housing; a handle onthe housing; a piston having a proximal end and a distal end; a motorwithin the housing operatively connected to the proximal end of thepiston, wherein the motor is configured to cause the piston toreciprocate between a minimum reciprocation stroke length and a maximumreciprocation stroke length at a first speed; a cam having a firstrotational position that controls a predetermined stroke length of thepiston to the minimum reciprocation stroke length, a second rotationalposition that controls the predetermined stroke length of the piston tothe maximum reciprocation stroke length, and a plurality of intermediaterotational positions that control the predetermined stroke length of thepiston to a plurality of intermediate stroke lengths between the minimumreciprocation stroke length and the maximum reciprocation stroke length;a connection mechanism at the distal end of the piston; and a firstmassaging head releasably coupled to the distal end of the piston viathe connection mechanism.
 2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein themaximum reciprocation stroke length corresponds to the distal end of thepiston being positioned furthest from the housing.
 3. The apparatus ofclaim 1, further comprising: a second massaging head configured toreleasably couple to the distal end of the piston via the connectionmechanism.
 4. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the connection mechanismis a quick release connector.
 5. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein themotor is configured to cause the piston to reciprocate between theminimum reciprocation stroke length and the maximum reciprocation strokelength at a second speed.
 6. The apparatus of claim 5, wherein the firstspeed and the second speed are each less than or equal to 3600 strokesper minute.
 7. The apparatus of claim 5, wherein the first speed and thesecond speed are each greater than or equal to 600 strokes per minute.8. The apparatus of claim 5, wherein the first speed and the secondspeed are each selectable from a plurality of predetermined speeds in arange of 600 strokes per minute to 3600 strokes per minute.
 9. Theapparatus of claim 5, further comprising: a control panel positioned onan exterior of the housing.
 10. The apparatus of claim 9, wherein thecontrol panel is configured to display one or more visual indicators.11. The apparatus of claim 9, wherein the control panel has a displaydevice.
 12. The apparatus of claim 9, wherein the control panel has oneor more inputs.
 13. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein the one or moreinputs comprise at least one of: a button, a switch, and a dial.
 14. Theapparatus of claim 12, wherein the first speed and the second speed areeach selectable via the one or more inputs.
 15. The apparatus of claim12, wherein a first selection of the one or more inputs is configured tocause the apparatus to power on and wherein a second selection of theone or more inputs is configured to cause the apparatus to power off.16. The apparatus of claim 1, further comprising an audible feedbackdevice configured to generate one or more audible signals.
 17. Theapparatus of claim 1, further comprising a controller having, aprocessor, a memory, and a data connection.
 18. The apparatus of claim17, wherein the data connection is a wireless data connection.
 19. Theapparatus of claim 17, wherein the controller is configured to send, bythe data connection, first data to an external computing device.
 20. Theapparatus of claim 19, wherein the first data is indicative of usage ofthe apparatus for providing a massage.